


Curtain Call

by SaintTibbles



Category: Shingeki no Kyojin | Attack on Titan
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Theatre, Bullying, Explicit Language, F/F, F/M, Gen, Implied/Referenced Sexual Harassment, M/M, Sexual Humor, Show Choir AU, gratuitous musical numbers, idk there might be sexy stuff later we'll see how embarrassed i get, mostly just the gang being dweebs
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-04-04
Updated: 2014-05-03
Packaged: 2018-01-18 02:47:07
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 5,602
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1412116
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SaintTibbles/pseuds/SaintTibbles
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Eren is forced to join an extracurricular to "keep him out of trouble." This doesn't work. Armin and Mikasa are dragged along with him. Jean is a huge tool, Marco is cute as hell, and they are both really embarrassingly in love with each other. Bert and Ymir think that Reiner and Krista are dating (they're not). Petra wants a lead role in the school musical, a passing grade in physics, and for Auruo Bossard to leave her the hell alone. Literally everyone is making out in the costume closet. In he middle of all this, Levi and Hanji are attempting to direct the school's production of Beauty and the Beast, and make Levi's ragtag show choir the best in the state.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Audition

 

 

“Mr. Jaeger, this has got to stop.”

 

Eren couldn’t help but agree. He knew it was bad when the chair in Principal Pixis’s office felt more familiar than the chairs at his dining room table. He recognized a little star he had scratched in the armrest the last time he was here and a drop of blood on the cloth seat that he was pretty sure was his, too.

 

He was bleeding again, his nose leaking a rusty brown trail onto the hem of his shirt. The knuckles of his right hand were scratched and red from where they’d collided with someone’s teeth. His mom was going to kill him.

 

“This is the third time this month,” Principal Pixis reminded him, gazing across the desk at him with his sharp blue eyes. In general, Pixis seemed to be a decent guy; Eren just wound up on the wrong side of his desk a lot.

 

Eren’s gaze slid sideways. “I know,” he said.

 

“You could have given that boy a concussion!” Ms. Rico Brzenska, the guidance counselor, put her hands on her hips. She had been the one to break up the fight. “You’re lucky his parents aren’t pressing charges!”

 

Eren’s eyes flashed, and he sat up straight, his voice rising. “He started it! He and his _buddies_ were talking shit about my sister!”

 

“That doesn’t _matter_ —“ Ms. Brzenska said, but Eren cut her off.

 

“You didn’t hear them! They were saying gross shit, like…stuff they wanted to do to her! Those fuckers should be grateful I didn’t rip their dicks off!”

 

“Mr. Jaeger, _language_!” Ms. Brzenska hissed, although her frown deepened at this information. “If that was the case, you should have reported them to a staff member. You can’t always solve your problems with violence!”

 

“Oh yeah,” Eren said, sneering. “Like you guys would’ve actually done something? Besides give them a little _talking-to_? Maybe make them write an _apology letter_?”

 

“Eren,” Principal Pixis said, and although his voice didn’t rise in volume, he sounded angry. “You can’t keep getting into fights. This time, the police were called. Please, understand; it doesn’t matter how they start. If this continues, it’s going to be taken out of my hands, and I won’t be able to help you.” His eyebrows went up, and Eren knew what he was talking about. Juvie. He’d been to juvie once. He didn’t want to go back.

 

He inhaled deeply. “I get it, sir,” he said.

 

Pixis stroked his thick mustache. “I have no doubt that you do,” he replied. “But you know I’m going to have to punish you, somehow. This is grounds for suspension, but somehow I doubt that’s going to have any real effect on you.” He turned to the woman next to him. “Ms. Brzenska, what would you recommend?”

 

Eren’s eyes widened and his stomach turned over. _Oh no, no, no, no_. Ms. Brzenska smirked. She was hardcore, and Eren was also pretty sure she hated him, mainly because he caused a lot of paperwork for her. And now she was being handed his fate on a platter? Fuck.

 

After a few moments, she declared, “I think it would benefit Eren to join some sort of extracurricular activity. He would have something to keep him busy and out of trouble, and maybe he could channel his energies into something more productive.”

 

“Hmm,” Pixis said. “I like it. What do you say, Mr. Jaeger?”

 

Eren pulled a face. “Do I have to?”

 

“Unless you want to spend the next month in after-school detention,” Ms. Brzenska said crisply. Then she crossed her arms over her chest, looking vaguely amused. “You never know, Eren, it might be fun. You might make some friends.”

 

Eren scowled at her. Having your guidance counselor observe that you’ve got no friends seemed a lot like getting kicked in the nuts by your grandma. Pixis was still stroking his chin. “What about football?” he suggested. “That would give you an outlet for all that physical energy.”

 

“Um, sir?” Ms. Brzenska leaned over and said in a low voice. “All three of the other boys in the altercation are members of the football team.”

 

“Oh,” Pixis said. “Well, maybe not football then. But I want to see you in _something_ by the end of the week, Mr. Jaeger. Is that understood?”

 

Eren groaned, head leaning back and hitting the back of the chair. “Yes, sir,” he replied sourly.

 

“Good. Then get to class. I understand you’re late for algebra.”

 

As they watched Eren leave the room, Ms. Brzenska asked grimly, “You really think this will work?”

 

Pixis shrugged, looking beleaguered. “I’m at the end of my rope with that kid. I’m willing to try anything,” he replied. “See you later, Rico.”

 

Ms. Brzenska sighed. “Later, Pixis,” she muttered, and left.

 

Principal Pixis waited until the sound of her heels disappeared down the hallway. He craned his neck, straining to hear if anyone was coming. Then he pulled a flask from under his desk and took a long swig. He glanced at the clock. Only eleven-thirty, but that Jaeger kid would drive Mother Teresa to drink, he thought.

 

* * *

 

 

“You could do golf,” Armin suggested.

 

“Oh _fuck_ no,” Eren replied, gagging. “That sounds boring as hell.” He was sitting against the wall of the round cafeteria with Mikasa and Armin in their usual spot, picking at his food. He had spilled the details of his meeting in the principal’s office, and now his two best friends were trying to brainstorm activities for him to fill out his sentence. So far, nothing had really piqued his interest.

 

“I still can’t believe I have to do this,” he said, stirring his corn with his fork.

 

“It’s your own fault,” Mikasa chided without sympathy. “You can’t keep getting into fights.”

 

“I was fighting for your honor!” Eren protested.

 

“I can fight for my own honor, thank you,” his sister replied coolly. “Don’t get into trouble on my account.”

 

Eren sighed. He knew that Mikasa wasn’t mad at him for fighting, not really. She was the one who always kept him _out_ of trouble, and he knew she’d never forgive herself if he got sent back to juvie because he’d been defending her. Not that she couldn’t defend herself, anyway; she’d already surpassed all the boys in her judo class, to their consternation.

 

“What about choir? Armin’s in choir,” Mikasa said. Armin had tried out for the school’s singing group, called Titanic Sound, their freshman year. The name was homage to the fact that Sina High was the home of the Titans, although the choir Titans took a significant backseat to the football Titans in notoriety.

 

Eren raised an eyebrow skeptically. “Ew. No offense, Armin,” he said, waving a hand at his friend. “But that sounds really…not me.”

 

Armin shrugged. He and his grandfather had lived next door to the Jaegers for as long as Eren could remember, and at this point, Eren’s characteristic bluntness didn’t faze him. “None taken. But it would be an easy A for you,” he pointed out, scooping mac and cheese into his mouth. He was always casually suggesting ways for Eren to bring up his grades. Eren knew he wasn’t trying to be an ass about it; even a blind person couldn’t overlook his wilting GPA.

 

“Are you sure? Your director’s kind of terrifying.” Eren thought briefly of the little man with the dour face. He wasn’t physically imposing, but Eren had once seen him dragging a six-foot senior by the ear in tears and after that stayed well out of his way.

 

But Armin said, “Levi’s okay. Like, he’s tough, but as long as you stay on his good side, he grades easy. It doesn’t really matter if you’re a great singer; he’s more concerned with effort. Also, the final is singing karaoke.”

 

Eren raised his eyebrows thoughtfully. That didn’t sound too bad, at least in comparison to the six-page final essay he was facing from Mr. Dawke.

 

Another objection popped into his head. “But aren’t you guys some into some sort of High School Musical, Cirque de Soleil thing, too? Like leotards and shit?”

 

Armin rolled his eyes. “You don’t even know what Cirque de Soleil is. When it was on TV that one time, you fell asleep during the first five minutes. And I have never had to wear a leotard.”

 

“Oh, that’s good,” Eren said, grinning. “I thought I was missing out here.”

 

Armin shoved him, laughing, and Eren squawked as he upset his lunch tray. “It’s called a show choir, you dingus. It just means we sing and dance at the same time. Do you think you can handle that?”

 

Eren contemplated for a minute; it certainly sounded a lot less awful than any of the other options on the table. It wasn’t exactly a sport, but at least he’d be moving around. And it wasn’t like he was a bad singer; well, at least no one complained when he sang in the shower. He shot his sister a look to see what she thought. Mikasa said, “If you do it, I’ll do it with you.”

 

Eren groaned. “Mika, you don’t have to.”

 

“I want to,” she said staunchly. “It will give the three of us more time to hang out. Besides, I’m a better dancer than you and somebody’s got to make sure you don’t fall over your own ass.”

 

Armin laughed at Eren’s expression. “Hey, you could always do Mathletes, right?” he said, draining the last of his chocolate milk.

 

Eren went pale. “Okay, okay,” he said. “I’m in. Get me into your secret society of music men or whatever.”

 

“Well, you’ll have to try out,” Armin said, and held up a hand when he saw Eren’s mouth open in protest. “ _But_ I doubt either of you will have any trouble getting in. We’re short on members this year. Levi’ll pretty much take whoever he can get, so he’ll be thrilled to have new people auditioning.”

 

Eren thought of the little man’s dark eyes, permanently situated in a look of disdain. Auruo Bossard had once told him that Levi had been in the mob in the late nineties, but that somehow any records of it had been redacted. Mikasa had rolled her eyes, but Eren wondered if there might be a grain of truth in the story. He’d seen Levi stop fights just by _looking_ at people. He shifted uneasily.

 

“Yeah, right,” he said. “I’m sure he’ll be…thrilled.”

 

* * *

 

 

“Forget it,” Eren decided, three days later. “I’m doing golf.”

 

“No, you’re not,” Mikasa said flatly, and yanked on the back of his jacket to make him sit down next to her once more. They were sitting outside the music room, waiting to be called into their audition. Mikasa had _To Kill A Mockingbird_ open in her lap and didn’t even look up at him as she hauled him to the floor.

 

“I don’t wanna do it anymore, Mikasa. I can’t sing. I can’t fucking dance. I won’t audition.”

 

“Yes, you will,” she replied, scribbling on her study questions sheet.

 

Eren sulked, crossing his arms over his chest. “How can you _do_ that?” he asked incredulously.

 

Mikasa turned to look at him, blinking. “Do what?”

 

“Just…I dunno! Act like it’s no big deal! I’m about to embarrass the shit out of myself!”

 

Mikasa sighed, closing her book. “No, you aren’t, Eren.”

 

Eren knew his face was turning red. He didn’t want to tell Mikasa that he was scared of some little dude in a cravat, although she’d probably already figured it out, knowing her. Their parents had adopted Mikasa when they were both nine, and even though they weren’t blood-related, they had become attached at the hip. They understood each other on a practically telepathic level. It was great, but it also sort of annoyed Eren how Mikasa always seemed to know what he was thinking before he did.

 

They had both been practicing with Armin in the music room during homeroom, when the place was always swarming with choir kids and band kids who wandered over from their adjoining hallway of practice rooms. Levi mostly stayed in his office during homeroom, where Eren had seen him talking to Mr. Smith, the band director, and a brunette with thick glasses who Armin said was the drama teacher. However, every now and then, Levi stuck his head out to yell at everyone for being too loud, or to give ruthless critiques to his students.

 

“Mina, that solo was flatter than a pancake.”

 

“Erd, for chrissakes, it’s not an opera. Tone it down, I can’t hear the tenors over that noise.”

 

“You’d better get those moves down, Springer, and quit prancing around like a drunk gazelle or I swear to god, I’m sticking you behind Bertholdt!”

 

So by the time he and Mikasa were supposed to audition, deep-seated terror had set in, although Armin said that nerves were completely normal. _Why isn’t Mikasa having a nervous breakdown, then?_ Eren thought wildly. _Oh, right. Because Mikasa is good at everything._ He wasn’t sure when this had become such a big deal to him. It was supposed to be a punishment, for crying out loud. Everyone made it sound like it was so easy, but what if he didn’t make it? Eren didn’t have anything that he was particularly good at, besides maybe skateboarding and making a really good quesadilla. If he couldn’t even get in the _choir_ …well, that would just be sad.

 

He was considering making a break for it—if he caught Mikasa by surprise, maybe she wouldn’t catch him—when the choir room door opened and Levi appeared in the doorway. “Eren Jaeger?”

 

Eren sat there like a dumbstruck deer in the headlights, until Mikasa nudged him hard in the ribs and startled him to his feet. He walked through the double doors, feeling Levi’s eyes on him all the while, and he heard the door slam behind him with finality.

 

“So,” Levi said, and Eren jumped when he realized he was right next to him. How did he manage to move so quietly? Maybe he was a vampire. Levi sat down on the piano bench, clipboard in hand. “What have you prepared for me today?”

 

Eren swallowed hard. He felt incredibly stupid, and all of a sudden he was very aware of the holes in his jeans and the heel that was peeling off his shoe. Armin hadn’t told him to dress up or anything, but this guy’s critical stare made him wish he had. “Um,” he said intelligently. “I, uh. Well.”

 

Levi rolled his eyes. “Spit it out, kid, I don’t have all day.”

 

Eren straightened up. “Right. Sorry. I’m going to sing, um, _Doctor My Eyes by_ Jackson Browne.”

 

Levi raised one eyebrow and made a note on his clipboard. “Alright, then. Go ahead.”

 

Eren cleared his throat, shaking out the tension in his arms and focusing on a spot somewhere to the left of Levi’s head. He took a deep breath and began.

 

“ _Doctor, my eyes have seen the years,_

_And the slow parade of fears without crying_

_Now I want to understand,”_

 

He could feel an undercurrent of a tremor in his voice, but he tried to ignore it, shifting from foot to foot with the rhythm.

 

“ _I have done all that I could,_

_To see the evil and the good without hiding,_

_Was I unwise to leave them open for so long,”_

 

He could feel Levi’s dark eyes boring into him and kept his own resolutely fixed on the wall behind him. He had a terrible feeling that if he met Levi’s gaze head-on he might choke on his own tongue.

 

“ _Doctor, my eyes,_

_Tell me what is wrong,_

_Was I unwise to keep them open for so long.”_

 

“Okay, stop, that’s enough,” Levi said sharply, and Eren cut off rapidly. “Now let’s see the dance.”

 

Armin had taught Eren a short dance routine that involved a lot of jazz hands and something called a grapevine. Armin seemed to think it wasn’t that hard, but Eren felt like a giraffe, always unsure of where his feet were supposed to land. Levi started the music that went with it, and Eren gamely went into it, trying not to have a panic attack on the spot. Every move seemed painful, stilted, and Eren felt his face going red as he realized he finished two beats behind.

 

Levi shut off the music and made several more notes on his clipboard without saying a word, and Eren wondered nervously what he could possibly have to write that was taking so long. He must have been really terrible.

 

Finally he looked up, his eyes still impassive and unreadable. “Alright, go wait in the hall. Send the girl in.”

 

Eren stumbled to the door, his heart still pounding, and he looked back to see Levi still frowning down at his clipboard, deep in concentration. As the door shut behind him, Levi’s eyes flicked to the place where the boy had disappeared, and then traveled back to the paper in front of him.

 

“Seven-letter word for an enchantment…hell, what is that?” he muttered, tapping his pen on the day’s crossword, full of mindless doodles and scratched out attempts. It would come to him in a minute, he knew it would. Hanji had beaten him at the crossword for the last three days; Levi would be damned if he’d let it get to four. He glanced at the evaluation sheet clipped under the folded-up newspaper, but quickly returned his attention to more pressing matters.

 

* * *

 

 

A few minutes later, Levi returned with Mikasa in tow. He leaned on the doorway and said in a bored voice, “You’re both in. Get your butts down to Ms. Brzenska’s office and get your schedules rearranged. See you on Monday morning.” He paused briefly, his eyes widening, and he hissed, “ _Sorcery!_ ” Then he ducked back inside the music room and slammed the door.

 

Eren and Mikasa exchanged a look. “What just happened?” Eren asked, feeling slightly shell-shocked.

 

Mikasa was staring at the door. “I think there’s something wrong with that guy,” she muttered.

 

Suddenly, Levi’s words jolted Eren’s brain and he felt relief flood through him. “We got in! Hell yeah!” He punched the air.

 

Mikasa wasn’t looking quite as thrilled about choir as she had been. “Yeah, great,” she said uneasily. Eren was already halfway down the hall.

 

“We better get down to the counselor’s office before she leaves for the day! Mom’s supposed to pick us up in twenty minutes!”

 

“Right,” Mikasa replied. She sighed, hauling her bag over one shoulder and followed her enthusiastic brother as he trotted down the hall.


	2. New Kids on the Block

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Choir kids are fucking weird.

On Monday morning, Eren had Titanic Sound first block, so he found himself venturing down the performing arts hallway with Mikasa and Armin. There were a lot of people milling around. Band students laughed and joked with each other as they hauled instruments out of their lockers. Eren was almost assaulted by a kid with a French horn, but he ducked just in time. They could hear the steady banging of the piano keys through the open choir room doors.

 

“ _Sasha, get back here_!” A girl with a brown ponytail darted in between Eren and Armin, half a muffin stuffed in her mouth and a navy blue blazer tucked under one arm. A kid with a sandy undercut came tearing after her, almost plastering Armin to the band lockers. “Sasha, give it back! That’s Ralph Lauren, you’re gonna _wrinkle_ it!”

 

Sasha paused in the doorway to the choir room, smirking through a mouthful of muffin. “It looks better on me!” she declared, darting inside like some sort of mischievous woodland sprite.

 

“Is it always like this?” Eren asked Armin.

 

“Pretty much, yeah,” he said, seeming unaffected by the chaos. Mikasa muttered something volatile in Japanese under her breath.

 

They went inside, and the piano music rose in volume, accompanied by an assortment of jumbled voices singing sort of in unison. A tall boy with dark hair sat at the piano bench, plunking out a tune, and three other guys stood around it, singing at the top of their lungs.

 

“ _Oooooklahoma, where the wind comes sweeping down the plain! Where the waving wheat can sure smell sweet, where the wind comes right before the rain!”_ Reiner Braun, who Eren had played intermural football with in middle school, was leading the chorus, complete with dramatic hand gestures, along with two seniors Eren didn’t know. Eren would never have guessed that Reiner was harboring such a freight train of a voice, being more associated with his talent on the football field, but he had a powerful bass that filled the entire room.

 

“ _OOOoooOklahoma every night, my honey lamb and I will sit and talk and watch a hawk as it circles through the skyyyy!”_ Reiner dragged out the last word in an operatic tremor, causing his friends to dissolve into laughter.

 

“Damn, Reiner,” Eren said, sidling up to the piano. “Nice pipes.”

 

Reiner brightened up and grabbed his hand, pulling him in and smacking him on the back. “Eren Jaeger!” he said. “Sup, dude? That’s the product of years of solos in my church choir you hear there. My ma made me.” Eren could believe it; Reiner’s mom had been their coach back in the day, and although Reiner had outstripped her in height by now, Eren doubted that she was any less terrifying. Reiner leaned an elbow heavily on his shoulder. “So, what brings you down to our neck of the woods?”

 

“They’re trying to reform me,” Eren said, grinning. “Sent too many people to the nurse’s office.”

 

Reiner’s eyebrows went up a little, but his grin didn’t fade. “Damn, dude! You always were a vicious little shit. How’s it goin’, Mikasa?” He nodded to her and she gave him a sidelong, impassive glance.

 

“Fine. Yourself?”

 

“Alright, I guess. Ha. Hey, Bert, do you know anything from _Little Shop_?” He nodded at the guy sitting at the piano bench, who was apparently facilitating a sing-along.

 

Bert shook his head, pulling down his sweater sleeves. “Huh uh,” he said in a quiet but surprisingly deep voice. He was tall, probably taller than Reiner when he was standing, and he seemed nervous, but Eren got the impression that it was more an inherent part of his personality than a temporary state. He shifted on the bench, and added, “I know some stuff from _Chess_ , though.”

 

One of the guys at the end of the piano, a blond with a little goatee, laughed. “You _would_ know _Chess_ , Bert,” he said.

 

Bert went a little red and he chuckled nervously. Reiner leaned over and reached around his head to give him a noogie. “This is Bertholdt Fubar, resident piano player extraordinaire.”

 

“Call me Bert, please,” said the extraordinaire in question, embarrassed. It looked like Reiner might be choking him a little. “And I do sing, too. We just can’t afford a full-time piano player, so I do it during practices.”

 

“Alright, sit down, ya punks!” Eren jumped as Levi appeared from his office, walking briskly to the center of the room. Everyone scattered and scrambled to get to their seats. “Sasha! What are you doing with food in here?”

 

Sasha stopped chewing, wiping a few muffin crumbs off of her chin. “Um…eating it?”

 

“Make it disappear. Now.” Sasha complied, inhaling the remainder of the muffin with almost superhuman speed.

 

Levi leaned over the piano, a piece of paper in hand. He looked more teacher-like today, swapping out the cravat for a shirt and tie. But, Eren noticed, the tie still had a pattern of piano keys on it.

 

“Okay, shut up! We’ve got some shit to go over! Ymir! Quit drawing on Connie’s arm! Connie! Quit _letting_ her! God,” he muttered to himself. “Do I have to change your diapers too?” Eventually everyone settled into their seats and the chattering diminished to a few whispers and Levi began. “Okay, first things first. We’ve got two new members, Mikasa and Eren.” He gestured to them, sitting in the front row next to Armin. “Mikasa, you’re gonna go with the altos for now, over there. You can look over Petra’s shoulder until we can get you your own copies of the music. And Eren…” He squinted, scanning the back row. “You’re a baritone. You can shadow Gunther for today.” He pointed vaguely, and a stocky guy with dark hair waved a hand at him, smiling. Eren hurried up the steps, and Gunther scooted over so Eren could sit between him and the boy who had, it seemed, retrieved his slightly rumpled blazer.

 

Levi continued with his announcements. “We still need four more people and a chaperone to cover football concessions on Friday.” He glared at them all. “I want this sign-up sheet full by the end of today, got it? I want us to make it all the way to Chicago, not run out of gas halfway there.”

 

“Chicago?” Eren muttered curiously to Gunther.

 

“Show choir competition,” Gunther replied. “We try and do one every two years. Last time it was in Branson. But the performing arts department’s broke so we have to do a bunch of fundraising in order to go.”

 

Levi was still talking. “Talent show auditions are a week from Thursday, so get your acts together, literally. And do me a favor and pick something not embarrassing. I do _not_ want a repeat of the gummy bear rap.” He shot a withering look at Sasha, who exchanged a truly wicked grin with Connie Springer, and several giggles erupted around the room.

 

“Also, if you haven’t coughed up for character shoes yet, get it done. Okay, I think that’s everything.” Levi came around the front of the piano and clapped his hands together. “Get your music out. We’ll start with _The Look_ today. I want us to have it ready for the talent show in case we need Titanic Sound to fill up the schedule. Jean, you take the solo.” There was a rustle of pages as everyone pulled stapled sheet music out of bright blue folders.

 

“Hey.” Eren turned to see the Ralph Lauren guy looking at him with a strange, intent expression on his face. “Jean Kirschstein. We went to Rosa together, remember?”

 

“Oh. Yeah.” Eren had switched elementary schools in the middle of the third grade, so it took him a minute to recognize the guy. Looking at him closely, Eren had a vague memory of an irritating, floppy-haired kid with Harry Potter glasses. He had since ditched both the haircut and the specs, but he still had the same long nose and owly expression.

 

He jutted his chin towards the alto section and asked, “You know her very well? Mikasa, or whatever?”

 

Eren blinked, frowning. “Um. Yeah. Why?”

 

Jean was looking past him at the back of Mikasa’s silky hair. “She’s kinda hot, in a serial killer sort of way. Is she dating anyone?”

 

Eren’s decent mood evaporated and he felt the rapid onset of utter loathing. “Fuck you, dude.”

 

Jean looked back at him, eyebrows riding up in surprise and irritation. “What? It’s just a question, god. Why? Is she your girlfriend?” Eren thought he could hear Gunther beside them trying to stifle his laughter.

 

“She’s my _sister_ , asshat!”

 

“Jaeger! Kirschstein!” Levi barked, and they turned to see him glaring at them both. “Are you finished?” Eren and Jean both turned to face forward again and, satisfied, Levi waved to Bert, who started into the intro to the song. Mikasa was staring over at them, her eyes plainly asking _what the hell was that?_ But Eren shook his head at her and eventually, she turned around again.

 

“ _Walking like a man, hittin’ like a hammer, she’s a juvenile scam, never was a quitter. Tasty like a raindrop, she’s got the look.”_

 

Eren craned his neck to look at Gunther’s music, doing his best to follow along with the old Roxette song. It sounded completely different being performed by a full choir than it did on his mother’s record player, and although a few people lagged and someone in the tenor section was obviously way off pitch, there was a certain dramatic fullness to the sound, and he imagined it would sound really cool once they’d practiced it a bit more.

 

When it came to the solo part, Eren shot an irritated sideways glance at Jean as he launched into it, obviously used to singing this part.

 

“ _Fire in the ice, looking like a fighter is a lover’s disguise, bangin’ on the head drum, shakin’ like a mad bull, she’s got the look.”_ Bert pounded the dramatic segue into the next part, and Eren could swear Jean was shooting a sultry look at Mikasa, but fortunately, she was looking nowhere near him.

 

“ _What in the world could make a brown-eyed girl turn blue? When everything I’ll ever do I’ll do for you? And I go la, la, la, la, she’s got the look!”_

 

Eventually, Levi switched gears and had them start dancing. When everyone began partnering up, Eren and Mikasa immediately gravitated to each other, but Levi shook his head.

 

“Nope, you two split up. You should be with someone who already knows the dance. Let’s see…Jean, you pair up with Mikasa.” Eren felt a lead weight sink into his stomach at the look of glee on Jean’s stupid face. “And Annie, you go with Eren. And then your partners can pair up.”

 

Connie Springer honestly looked relieved as his partner drifted away from him and down the steps to where Eren stood. He straightened up, watching her warily. If Jean thought Mikasa looked like a serial killer, then clearly he hadn’t been paying attention to this girl, Eren thought. Annie wore a hoodie several sizes too big for her, and her blonde hair fell in her eyes, half tossed into a loose knot at the back of her head. She had a hawkish nose and her pale, heavy-lidded eyes appraised Eren blandly, like she found him about as useful as a coat rack. Maybe even less useful, Eren thought vaguely. Coat racks were at least good for something. The look Annie was giving him was so wilting and apathetic that his stomach briefly considered curling in on itself.

 

“Hey,” he said, and she turned to the front of the room, hands in her hoodie pockets, making a noncommittal “hmm” sound while she examined her fingernails. Whatever hope Eren might have had to be friendly with her faded quickly, so he decided to just try not to piss her off. Those nails were really long and kind of sharp looking.

 

The music started again and Eren’s foot tapped steadily on the floor, trying to keep the beat. Armin had taught he and Mikasa some of the dance moves so they wouldn’t be completely behind, but he still felt nervy and unprepared. Fortunately, the dance for _The Look_ involved a lot of walking around your partner and not a whole lot of touching, so maybe he could make it through this number alive.

 

Or maybe not. Almost immediately, he walked the wrong way, nearly colliding with Auruo Bossard, who muttered, “watch it!” and swerved to avoid him. He stumbled through the first verse, barely singing at all and mostly just trying to not fall on his face, glancing sideways at the people around him to see what they were doing. Annie hardly looked at him, singing and dancing her part cleanly but with a detached air. Eren felt that nervous panic bubbling in his stomach again; it was only his first day, but he was so far behind, and he had no idea how he’d be able to catch up.

 

It turned out that it was difficult to avoid contact with someone you were supposed to be dancing with. Every now and then, Levi stopped the music and had Petra—the choir’s choreographer—go over the moves one more time, and Eren feigned intense concentration on the dance moves that involved not touching Annie. Fortunately, this seemed to suit Annie just fine.

 

“So, uh, you doing anything later?”

 

Eren’s neck snapped around so hard it cracked, and he glared daggers at the back of Jean’s head, one riser down. Mikasa looked bored, grabbing Jean’s hands as the music started up again. “Yes,” she said shortly.

 

Jean had to wait until the musical break to try again. Eren heard him over the piano, muttering, “Uh, you think you might…wanna do…whatever it is…together?”

 

Eren kept one eye on them, even after Mikasa replied vaguely, “Not really.” He was so distracted that he stepped on Annie’s foot. She hissed and froze, and gave him a look that made his life flash before his eyes. Then, surprisingly, she took a deep breath and grabbed him by both arms, turning him and positioning him so he matched all the other male partners in the room. Then she grabbed his hand and spun into him, dipping back for the final pose.

 

The music ended and she waited about a nanosecond to let go of him, shoving her hands back in her sweater. The bell rang and Levi yelled above the din of everyone rushing to collect their belongings. “Don’t forget! Evening practice on Wednesday at seven! Be here on _time_!”

 

“Hey, thanks,” Eren said quickly as Annie started to walk away.

 

“Don’t mention it,” she said flatly, not looking at him. “Ever.” She hurried away quickly, and was out the door before Eren could even conjure up enough air to respond.

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm gettin' all nostalgic writing about choir kids. Also stony-faced Levi wearing ridiculous, campy ties is now a thing.
> 
> "The Look" by Roxette was my show choir's signature song in HS…I'm not crazy about the original arrangement and I can't find a choral cover of it, which is kind of a bummer. :/ Just…trust me. It sounds really good when performed by a full choir…
> 
> The gummy bear rap was actually a thing that my friends & I did in the 7th grade, and it was…not pretty.
> 
> My tumblr is here: http://saint-tibbles.tumblr.com

**Author's Note:**

> Alright so this is the show choir AU I've wanted to write in basically every fandom I've ever been in, and I finally sat down and WROTE IT. It will be a series of chronological vignettes over a whole school year, sometimes with time skips and the character perspective will rotate. Also, I draw a lot, so I'll be interspersing doodles from this AU (and probably editing more in as I keep going). I will post all related art at my tumblr (http://saint-tibbles.tumblr.com) under the tags "show choir au" or "fic: curtain call."
> 
> Thanks for reading, guys!! -Erin


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